


You Seem Too Good To Be True

by Beethovensbitxh



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV 2020)
Genre: M/M, ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, almost 4k words of willex fluff, this drove me crazy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-15
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-24 01:08:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30064365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beethovensbitxh/pseuds/Beethovensbitxh
Summary: Willie takes Alex ballroom dancing and sparks fly
Relationships: Alex Mercer/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 42





	You Seem Too Good To Be True

**Author's Note:**

> No because y'all wouldn't have this if not for Aryn (@funsizearsonist on tumblr) because they wrote most of the song. They saved my ass and I love them

“C’mon Hotdog! It’ll be fun! There's this rad ballroom that we can break-” “If you even dare say “break into I’m not going Willie…” Alex raised his finger to the boy across from him, and Willie lowered his arms and his wide grin fell in surprise. He furrowed his brow and bit his lip. “Then… it- nevermindthenwedonthaveto-” he spoke quickly and clapped his hands together.

Alex put his hands up, waving them, “No! No I was just- we can totally do it! Just… maybe not… call it...breaking in though…” His pace was slow compared to Willie’s and both looked to the ground. 

“Okay… we don’t call it breaking in. What about ‘renting it out’?” Willie quickly regained his glee, and Alex met his eyes and smiled. Willie’s eyes were glimmering with the lights of the Orpheum sign, and Alex was sure that it was the most beautiful sight in the world.

He nodded and Willie pumped his fist.

“Meet me-” he looked down and pointed at the ground, “right here. 8 O’clock?” Alex nodded quickly, just to see Willie smile again as he said “See ya then Hotdog.” and then he was gone in a flurry of green.

  
Alex arrived back to the house in a poof, appearing right in front of Julie as she sat in her room, startling her when he squeaked “Help!” and she almost dropped her English homework. 

“Alex! God! What?” She widened her eyes and he fell to his knees, placing a hand on her knee. She found that she liked it now that her boys could touch her, but it had gotten frustrating when Luke realized that he could place a cold hand on her neck when she least expected it and scare her.

“Willie… he- he- he set up a… a date? I think? We’re going dancing? I need help…” He pleaded, and Julie raised her eyebrows. “Oh my god Alex! Why didn’t you say that! You need help with… what? An outfit? Dancing techniques?” 

Alex waved his other hand, “E- everything! I need help with literally everything because my heart is racing even though I don’t have one and I can… barely breathe despite the- the whole no-lungs thing ya know?”

Alex reached out and laid a hand on his shoulder, and she immediately felt him relax a bit. “Of course I will help you Alex. A first date is a big deal.” Alex groaned and hung his head, “It’s not my first date-” he was cut off by “Oh my god Alex is going on his first date?”

Flynn was in the doorway, holding a bowl of popcorn and looking at Julie's seemingly floating hand, “Tell her it's not my first date!” “With Willie!” Julie smirked, and Alex rolled his eyes. 

Flynn threw herself onto the bed, nearly spilling the popcorn, and launched her head forward at Alex. He knew she couldn't actually see him, but the way she looked at him made it seem like she could. “Please… let me help you pick your outfit.”

“You can’t even-” he turned to Juliet, “She can’t even see me!”

Julie repeated it back to Flynn, who got so close to Alex’s face he could almost feel her breath. “I have an excellent memory. And I’m kind of a style icon.” Julie nodded along in agreement, and Alex looked between both of them, before shooting up and turning around. “Fine.” he muttered, and Julie cheered, nodding in confirmation to Flynn.

“Oh this is gonna be so fun!”

Thank god for Ray Molina. 

That man certainly didn’t have the best taste in fashion, but if it wasn’t for the single black jacket in the back of his closet from what Julie assumed might have been his and her moms wedding, Alex would have gone in a floral patterned button up and slacks. 

Luke and Reggie had joined them halfway through the show, ready to commentate and make fun of Alex, who shot them glares the entire time. By the end of it, Reggie was covering his hand with his mouth and sniffling “Our baby’s all grown up” as Luke placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“You guys suck…” Alex rolled his eyes as he adjusted his sleeve, which was just a bit too big for him, and Julie laughed. “I think its sweet…”

Flynn had learned not to question it anymore, and she leant back to check the doorway and make sure no one was nearby. “Okay, how does he look? Is it like how I envision it?” 

Luke chuckled, “He looks beautiful!” “Absolutely stunning…” Reggie added on, and Alex reached over to smack whichever one didn't jump out of the way. Julie turned to look at Flynn, who waited in anticipation. She swung her elbow up to her shoulder and leaned onto Flynn, “He looks perfect. Couldn’t have done a better job myself…”

Alex was almost as nervous as the time he’d made out with Kevin Mourner underneath the gym bleachers during the third basketball game of the season when Kevin was supposed to be on the court. He remembered how his heart was in his throat and his face burned as he felt Kevin's hands wrap around his waist.

And he was definitely more nervous than when his sister also caught him making out with the captain of the lacrosse team. It wasn’t even that long ago, to him at least, but he still couldn’t remember the boy's name. At least then he’d known what would've happened, and it wouldn’t have been anything as nerve wracking as when he’d told his parents he was gay. She had just smiled and closed the door, and neither ever said anything about it again.

Alex gulped. He hadn’t seen his own reflection in 25 years, and he still wasn’t sure how he looked at that moment. But… he trusted his boys. Sometimes they were assholes, and yeah, sometimes they lied to his face just for the hell of it, but he always knew that they meant what they said, even if it sounded like one big joke.

He turned and nodded. “Thanks.”

“Now go. It’s 7:45. Never be late for a date.” Luke pointed, and Reggie nodded in silent agreement. 

“Right! Right! I’m going. I’m going… on a date…” He smiled to himself, and Julie grinned as he poofed out, watching Luke's face that seemed more than proud of him.

The strip was busy and running around him as arrived, and Alex had about 5 lifers rush through him in a row. Alex practically had to squeeze himself against the window of the nearest store to avoid them. He still hadn’t gotten used to it and avoiding it altogether seemed like the best option at this point. 

“Hey! Alex!” He heard from down the street, and turned to see his date- or whatever it is they were. Willie had arrived about 2 minutes before, but seeing Alex in  _ that  _ really took a toll on him. He’d stopped and studied every intricate detail about Alex, before finally gaining the courage to go over. 

He was dressed like he had been at the Orpheum, and Alex silently wondered if that was the only fancy thing he owned. “You look… wow!” Willie was almost breathless, like he’d ran there, but both of them knew he hadn’t.

“So do you…” Alex still hadn’t gotten used to seeing Willes hair in a bun yet, and he probably never would. “So… where's this place? The ballroom we…” he brought his hands up to do air quotes, “rented?”

Willie laughed, letting a strand of hair fall into his face, and he brushed it behind his ear. “It's just up the street…” he extended his hand, letting a grin creep up his face, “coming?” Alex felt his would-be stomach jump up into his throat, but he reached out to take Willies hand.

And for a moment, it was just the two of them, walking down the strip hand in hand, with no real reason to think about why fate had drawn them together. It was the perfect moment, with the blaring police sirens racing down the street and the gutter water dripping onto lifers' heads. If you squinted and tried not to pay attention to anything else going on, it could've been like a scene in a romance movie.

Willie stopped them in front of a building that looked just a tad out of place. A wave of Deja Vu almost knocked Alex flat on his ass, and that feeling of euphoria he’d gotten when Willie led him down the street disappeared when he let go of his hand. 

“Hey… Hot-“ Willie stopped himself, it didn’t seem like the right time to use some stupid nickname, “Alex. We don’t have to do this if you-“ Alex just gave him this look, and reached down to take Willie’s hand again in the same way Willie had taken his on that first museum outing.

Alex had tunnel vision and the world was slipping away in his hand, and Alex was scrambling to hold onto it.

This time, he was leading. Dancing had never been much of a strong suit, that had been abundantly clear when the Mercers made him attend the Cotillion in middle school. Sure, he liked to goof around with it sometimes, make his friends laugh, but it was never an actual hobby. He didn’t feel out of place though. Alex felt at home and in- in something. He wasn’t entirely sure what it was, but it felt good and warm and never ending.

“Comin’?” He said again, pulling Willie through the front doors of the building, even though they were still shut. Being a ghost worked out in some ways.

Alex hadn’t seen something as pretty, well he’d seen Willie. That had to count for something. Lights and candles and flower arrangements brought Alex back to middle school, and for a second he thought he saw Mandy Klyne, his first partner to Cotillion, descending the steps.

“Alex? You okay?” 

  
Willie’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts, and Alex realized they were still holding hands. He smiled, his face melting into something similar to someone struck by an arrow of cupid's bow.

“Couldn’t be better.”

Willie gave his hand a little tug, pulling Alex along. Alex remembered the first time he’d seen Willie dancing, and how happy he’d looked doing it even though it was for Caleb. He remembered the smile on his face that melted the world away like ice surrounding a single speck of dirt. But he also remembered seeing him disappear into the crowd amongst the lifers and the ghosts.

But here, there was no Caleb to hurt him and no crowd to swallow him up. It was bright and warm and the world barely existed anymore, and it was still slipping away like water in his palm and through his fingers. It wasn’t a bad thing though. This time he wanted it to.

“Watch this.” Willie smirked, waving his hand towards the small stage on the far side of the room, and the room filled with classical music.

The lights seemed to glaze over Alex at just the right angle, and his already golden hair was like a halo around his head. He was angelic and innocent and just the right amount of beautiful to take Willies breath away. Willie reached up, pushing a loose strand of Alex's hair out of his face and behind his ear.

There was an awkward pause between the two as Willie let his hand slip down to rest on Alex’s collarbone, his thumb brushing over the other boy's jawline. Willie wanted nothing more than to place soft kisses into it, hoping to catch that familiar scent of caramel that lingered over him, even if he was dead.

“Isn’t this… the starting position to the waltz...or whatever?” Alex cleared his throat and tried to ignore the blatant tension between them, choosing rather to focus on the fact that their hands were still interlocked and Willie’s hand was on his shoulder and Alex’s hand was dangerously close to holding onto Willie’s hip. His face was flushed and for the first time in a long time, he had run out of things to say.

“Aren’t you the dancer?” Willie smirked, and Alex furrowed his brows and took in a breath, gritting his teeth, “Actually… I don’t actually know how to ballroom dance.” Willie chuckled, fixing his grip on Alex’s shoulder to actually hold onto it rather than loosely resting it on it.

“Then we’ll figure it out together.”

Alex wasn’t… well great would’ve won understatement of the year. He was horribly, unmistakably, disastrous at dancing. Ballroom dancing at least. 

It started with him just taking a misstep, and ended with Alex on the floor, staring up at the ceiling and Willie. The sound of his rubber soles squeaking on the linoleum floor was still hanging in the air, and it felt like the room was spinning.

And yet Willie was laughing. He was fucking laughing because this was the funniest shit he’d seen in decades and the guy he had a major crush on looked like a dumbass. But he was a cute dumbass so it was okay.

“Take my hand hotdog.” Willie extended it, and Alex let his chest deflate as he let out a defeated sigh. “Fine-” he grumbled, reaching up to take it. In all honesty, Alex wasn’t great with getting his pride damaged, it just took a lot of build up to finally get it all out.

“It’s like- it’s like keeping with the tempo right? That's kinda your specialty right?” Willie had to admit, he didn’t know that much about drumming. Everything he did know came from Alex's rants about how his friends “didn't appreciate the art of drumming” or how “Tim Alexander was the greatest drummer in history”. He also didn’t really know who Tim Alexander was, but whatever made Alex happy, it made Willie happy too.

So, Willie watched for that unforgiving smile that he adored so much. He was almost surprised by it when it did come, but seeing Alex’s face light up was worth all of the waiting.

_ Never meant to  _

_ Drag you down _

_ With my unrealistic expectations _

_ But now I'm  _

_ Reaching out my hand _

_ And I'm not one for proclamations _

He wasn’t entirely sure why Alex had agreed to this. Willie had majorly screwed this thing up, and he couldn’t understand that feeling of dread deep in his chest that came with every soul he brought to Caleb’s club. But Caleb wasn’t there anymore and he still couldn’t figure this out.

_ I couldn't do it without you _

_ I tried _

_ So hard _

_ And when it all seemed so dark _

_ You pulled _

_ Me out  _

_ And I am so in _

_ Deep to know that _

_ You seem too good to be true _

_ When I met you _

_ I knew I’d never be the same _

_ If only I could see inside your brain _

_ I don't want to tie you down _

_ And I'll probably be pushed away _

_ But I still trail behind _

_ Always wishing that you'd stay _

Alex saw that twinkle in Willies eye. The one he saw in Luke’s when he looked at Julie, or Reggie’s when he ate an entire box of Pizza back when they were alive. But he also knew that sometimes it disappeared. It had happened with his parents.

_ I can’t say I love you _

_ Because I know it must be wrong _

_ My brain has lost the correct _

_ Communication _

_ And it wont tell me _

_ How to start _

_ Even death couldn’t keep us apart _

_ My breath of spring (my guiding star) _

_ But we’ve come so so far _

_ So let's stick together _

_ We’ll run this town _

_ Into the ground (into the ground) _

_ Not even Hollywood is safe  _

_ From your rapid heart _

Admitting shit is hard. Like, the mega, horrible, fear inducing shit you bottle up and shove into a deep crevice. One that rivaled the Mariana Trench no doubt. 

And they danced around each other, in words and in real time.

_ I couldn't do it without you _

_ I tried _

_ So hard _

_ And when it all seemed so dark _

_ You pulled _

_ Me out  _

_ And I am so in _

_ Deep to know that _

_ You seem too good to be true _

It was a broken moment, splinters of light breaking off into hope and desperation, and Alex couldn’t understand their dynamic. 

And they were both smiling, bright eyed and goofily and Alex was barely taking in breaths. Willie moved his hand to cup the back of Alex’s neck, before letting them fall down his front, curling them into fists. “See? Wasn’t too bad Hotdog.”

Alex looked away, letting his eyes meet one of the mirrors on the farthest wall. It sucked not being able to see themselves in it, because all Alex wanted to see in it was how they stood and admire their figures still stood together. “I uhm- I guess there's… there’s a lot to like here...”

Willie took in a short raggedy inhale, holding it there until it became hard to do that. Everyone always told him to take chances when the time was right, and this was the right time. He threw his arms up and over Alex’s neck, pulling him closer than they’d ever been.

Alex tasted like buttermilk and felt like that sweet feeling in the air on the perfect day of April, where it's neither hot nor cold and there's a gentle breeze flowing through you. And it felt like everything he’d thought it would, with the eagerness and the gripping euphoria of staying like that forever.

Kissing Willie was like a fresh breath on the first day of fall when the air is crisp enough and people have started placing pumpkin scented candles in their windows. The perfect feeling. The perfect moment. The perfect person to spend his afterlife with.

Alex pushed himself deeper into the kiss, hanging his arm over Willie’s shoulder and grabbing at the fabric of his jacket. The overwhelming feeling of needing to breathe began to take over, and Alex supposed that it was maybe because he’d spent so long having to break intense make out sessions just to breathe. 

And then they finally broke apart, breaking that feeling of euphoria that had built up after so long, and the world fell back down and surrounded them. Alex wished it would swallow them like this, his lips stinging from the sudden lack of touch.

“Wowza…” Alex muttered, and Willie smiled, squinting. He was almost certainly thinking  _ what the fuck _ , but it was adorably awkward that he didn’t really care.

“Who's in here!” They heard, and both of them whipped their heads around. 

“Shit. Security...” “You- what? I didn’t know this place had security!” Alex stuttered, and furrowed his brow. His hand dropped down to Willies, who grabbed at it blindly, interlocking their fingers. 

Willie could feel his hand shaking, and the tension in it as he gripped at Willies hand. He hated how bad Alex felt, and he did what Alex would’ve done to anyone else. He pulled back on his hand, pulling Alex’s shoulder back. With his shoulder came his head, and that look Willie gave him enough understanding to have peace of mind.

“C’mon ‘Lex…”

Alex nodded and whispered “okay-”

And then they were gone. Gone in a burst of bright blue swirling with green.


End file.
